The Caldwell Catalogue

Some time ago, Patrick Moore devised a catalogue of 109 deep space objects to which he has lent his middle name "Caldwell"; thus "Caldwell objects", numbered C1 to C109. Why not "Moore"? The most famous catalogue of astronomical objects was created by Charles Messier in 1774, and these are designated M1 to M109; so, unable to use his own surname, Moore elected to use his middle name instead. He also chose 109 object to match Messier, though it is important to understand that not one of Moore's objects overlaps with Messier's. Because the Messier objects are relatively bright, the catalogue is used as a check list for amateur observers who want to look at an array of interesting astronomical targets that can be viewed without using powerful and expensive telescopes. This catalogue picks some of the best objects from both hemispheres, illustrates them with colour images from professional and amateur sources, and gives a written description with observing details. A positional chart is included.